Small Paws: Essential Behavior and Training Tips for Young Puppies and Small Dogs, by Sarah Whitehead (Dogwise Publishing, 2018, 17 pp, $2.95)
Perhaps the Best $3 Book to Give All Your Dog Training Clients!
I include this little book in many of my dog training packets and my clients love it as much as I do. You can read it in one sitting but you will also use a highlighter and even dog trainers will learn quite a bit.
So, why an entire book(let) on small dogs anyway? British author Sarah Whitehead tells us that small dogs are not just big dogs in miniature. They have their own special needs and can squeeze through the smallest hole in a fence: hence, consider putting your small dog on a long line in the backyard even when you are interacting with him.
About Housetraining
Have you even considered how low to the ground little dogs are? How, on dew-covered grass, they can quickly get their tummies uncomfortably cold and wet, how running to the back door to go out takes more steps and more time on a full bladder, and how much smaller their bladders actually are?
To Carry or Not To Carry. That is the Question. When is Your Decision.
The best training steps we have ever seen can be found on page 5, Pick-up Tips - well worth the cost of the booklet! Use two hands - one to lift and one to support. Become cognizant of your dog's subtle weight shifts - they are telling you something.
Whitehead knows little dogs and people who have little dogs. She states the pros and cons of carrying and then leaves it up to you and your little dog - she is on your side even as you are on your dog's side.
And the best list of Red Flags and Green Flags ever, can be found on page 10 to help you recognize stress signals and OK signals.
Just the Basics, Ma'am. Plus!
Have you considered training on the floor to make your little dog more comfortable? Do you know what to do about the cat?
What We Would Change
On page 3, an illustration of a dog on a back-attach harness simply doesn't fit in with all the other ideas in this slim volume. We would like a more clear definition of trigger and added emphasis on feeding animals apart - geographically, not temporally.
Independence Training to Prevent Separation Anxiety
Whitehead also shares what to do to avoid over-bonding with your dog and, finally, she recommends asking people to ignore your little one at first, rather than rushing him, to give him a chance to acclimate to new people which will give him confidence when they 'reach out and touch someone' - your little dog!
Other Books
Whitehead and Dogwise have also put together booklets on puppies,
and adolescent dogs(below),
gentle hands-off training
and mind games (below)
plus Whitehead has written several more. And remember, small dogs have small paws!
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